Celadon Eco Townhomes Now Open!

Wow, these turned out nice! We mentioned Celadon a long time ago, and now the twenty-four unit development is complete. The Charlotte Business Journal gave Celadon their Green Multifamily Project of the Year Award, and despite this crazy real estate market, buyers (who committed to a unit at the top of the market) are getting appraisals at the contract price. I guess you could say green and modern design holds market value … we certainly think it does. The interiors are minimalist and just right.

Celadon is still the only multifamily project in the area that's LEED Registered. The developers, Origin Development, LLC, expect LEED-ND certification shortly. Celadon residences tested out with a HERS rating of mid-to-upper 60s and are approximately 30-40% more energy efficient than standard homes.

With stormwater retention and native, drought-tolerant landscaping, the development is expected to save about 396,000 gallons of water annually. Additionally, units use a high-efficiency HVAC system, tankless water heater, skylights and solar tubes, a light-reflective roof, sub-metering, energy-efficient appliances, and low-VOC paints and materials, etc. If you're in the market, Celadon homes range in size from 1,000 – 2,400 square feet and in price from $235k – $495k.

Looks nice, though if I were going to spend that much on a house I would much rather have a LEED certified house that stood on its own. I dont mind renting an apartment/condo but I would not want to purchase one.

Really Nice! Think of the impact if all apartment buildings/ condos/ townhomes could be made as energy efficient as these units? That would be huge! Subtract some of the luxury finishes and these could end up in a more reasonable price range….

I love modernist architecture, but I can’t imagine anyone wanting to walk past that gauntlet of garage doors. Some modern designs are clean and minimal. Some are cold and uninviting. These are definitely the latter.

Seriously?!–are these still waiting to be painted or what?! what are those white panels going to look like after a couple years of weathering and staining?

maybe it’s “green”, but visual and cultural interaction with the surrounding environment is non-existent. this project says nothing about the city of Charlotte [other than people like to park under their houses, rather than beside them]. the lack of color and materiality voids the project of any contextual meaning and warmth.

Mmmh, but you see, the Celadon might very well be quite contextual. The loose arrangement of the units winds itself playfully down a gentle hillside. On top of the hillside it nestles along a gently curved road. And the white exterior plays wistfully with the changing light and moods of the weather. It actually holds itself back and stands in a give and take relationship with its surroundings. And the warmth? Well, the stepped building volumes and the cutouts and overhangs of each unit do the trick. Even at an overcast day, shade and shadows play a game of hide and seek. And just imagine the life that pokes out from the windows or the open garage doors. The niches and jut outs, the slight shift from one unit to the next, they catch life’s colorful moments and ask them to interact. These white boxes are not bland at all.
Charlotte has certainly seen only very little of such playful and thoughtful architecture. It can only be proud of it. Hats off to the visionary developers and talented designers.

@ toby
sorry–don’t buy it. if this all-white design was made in mind for the buyer to customize their own place, then maybe it could create a more diverse palette. “stepped building volumes” and “shadow play” alone can’t inch its way to brilliance. this is a texture-less and mind numbing residence with the curse of a non-committal design approach written all over it–your poetic justifications seem directed at and for the authors.

if this is the best charlotte has done in a while that is truly unfortunate, and they need to try a lot harder in the future.